When you toss in a staff that features a true ace in Justin
Verlander and solid hurlers such as Max Scerzer, Doug Fister, and Anibal
Sanchez, you have to like the Tigers' chances of sniffing another World Series
berth.

Washington Nationals (+800)

Here's another team you need to take very seriously. The
Nationals burst onto the scene last year thanks to a wonderful pitching staff
and will be right back in the mix of things in 2013.

Stephen Strasburg was electrifying before hitting his
innings limit, and Gio Gonzalez (2.89 ERA) and Jordan (2.94 ERA) were excellent
as well.

A full season from Jayson Werth, assuming he can stay
healthy, along with more improvement from Bryce Harper could really take
Washington to the next level. The fact the Nationals were able to snag Rafael
Soriano, who had 42 saves and a 2.26 ERA after taking over for Mariano Rivera
in New York, is only icing on the cake.

This time around it was the signing of Josh Hamilton that stole
the headlines. Afters slugging 43 home runs to go along with 128 RBI in 2012,
Hamilton joins up with an Angels roster that already has the likes of Albert
Pujols, Mike Trout, and Mark Trumbo.

Jered Weaver was simply outstanding last season as the ace
of the staff, recording a 20-5 W/L record while sporting a 2.81 ERA and 1.02
WHIP. Assuming the Angels can get more out of C.J. Wilson and solid seasons out
of Tommy Hanson and Joe Blanton, they're going to be tough to beat.

Toronto Blue Jays (+850)

The Blue Jays were the most active team over the offseason
and will take a revamped batting order and pitching rotation into the start of
the new season.

Jose Reyes and Melky Cabrera will join forces with Jose
Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion to form a deadly lineup for opposing AL pitchers
to deal with.

Pitching was what needed addressing most though and Toronto
definitely wasn't shy. They went out and got an ace (R.A. Dickey) and also
snapped up Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle from Miami. Don't forget about Brandow
Morrow (10-7, 2.96 ERA) either, who was very effective when healthy last
season.

Of these, we like the price on the Braves. They brought over
Justin Upton from Arizona, re-uniting him with his brother, have a deadly
one-two punch atop their rotation with Tim Hudson and Kris Medlen, and have the
best closer in the bigs in Craig Kimbrel.

If all goes well, it's hard not to get reeled in by those
baseball odds on the Dodgers too. They've got Adrian Gonzalez, Matt Kemp,
Hanley Ramirez, and Andre Ethier, and could maybe even get a bounce-back season
from Carl Crawford if he recovers fully. Plus, Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke
on the same staff is serious business.